Kayak Koz

Those are all Photoshopped ?

I built my own PC about 12 years ago and it still works great. I picked the case, motherboard, CPU, power supply, RAM, cooling system, hard drives, everything. The only changes since the original build has been upgrading the hard drive and RAM and the Windows OS upgrades. I couldn’t be happier with it. I also have a Mac that I needed to use to develop IOS apps. Try as I might, I never liked it and I only use it for IOS app development. I taught my son to change a tire when he was 12 (he’s 14 now). We did the Home Depot and Lowe’s kids workshops when he was young to introduce him to tools. Since then we’ve done a number of woodworking and home projects and he’s familiar with more hand and power tools. He may not be good with them yet, but at least he’s used them. But I do agree that today’s younger generation seems to rely more and more on third parties to do what I think are basic tasks.

Flames. I think flames would complete the look.? Sorry - I’m punchy from this extended quarantine.

I love the old Havoc Pit Boss, especially as a trailer on a Chatterbait. I HATE the new Power Bait Pit Boss. In fact, I’ve never had a strike on one. Not one.

Every spring I have great success with a white spinnerbait with willow leaf blades paired with a white Keitech Swing Impact Fat trailer. I’ve tried other paddle tail trailers but none works as well as the Keitech.

It’s not always easy to site fish from the bank, but every now and then it pays off. Today I saw a bass swim off to my left just in front of a 4 foot juvenile gator out in front of me. I dropped a wacky rigged Senko out in front of the bass and sure enough it hit. Then the bass took off towards the gator. I reeled it in just clearing the gator then had to run down the shoreline as the gator started to follow. Luckily he stopped just as he hit the bank. It was a bit of an adrenaline rush for a few seconds. Landed a nice 4 pounder, though.

I use fish grippers when landing a bass. It’s not always the most convenient, but I haven’t been stuck yet.

Where I live both Dick’s and Academy stopped selling fishing gear. We do have a Cabela’s that seems fully stocked now. For the next few weeks I’m visiting my parents and the local Dick’s has some fishing gear but the Bass Pro in nearby Savannah is closed. It looks like I may have to buy more gear at Walmart since their supply chain is probably the strongest.

One day, lad, all this will be yours! What, the curtains?

Thanks. I don't know what it is with him and homework lately. He went from mostly A's to terrible grades to mediocre grades simply because he does not turn in some homework or projects. As a parent it's frustrating. But they are his grades and not mine. He gets guidance and support, but ultimately it's his choice. I did get him to start reading info on the Keep Playing Baseball website and that started to change his mindset (but it's tough again with e-Learning at home due to Covid-19). For parents of any potential college baseball player the KPB website is a great resource. As for stepping into the box against my son, I don't do that any more. I don't even catch him off the mound anymore. I don't trust my old eyes and fading reflexes. Plus, because he throws hard and has movement I have to focus on the ball and can't focus on his mechanics. It's much easier to have him throw into a net and take super slo mo video of him to break down what he's doing.

If it's not the guides then there are two likely options. The first is a poor know. You said you had confidence in your knots but it doesn't hurt to check again. Heck, make some casts with those baits on dry land and examine what happens. The second option is that you forgot to thread the line through the line guide on the reel. Yes, that does happen.

I enjoy relaxing in the outdoors and walking the banks. I also enjoy catching fish. Those two things don't always happen on the same day.

Fish have noses? ?

Thanks. Matt works hard at his game. We were tweaking his kick out and stride the other day when I took this video and his ability to make those changes paid off. In the second photo he gets the ball too far behind his head for my liking. First, that torques the elbow too much. Second, he's showing the batter the ball a bit more instead of hiding it. But the big thing is that he gets his glove hand a few inches too high and gets his throwing hand coming up a little too soon. If he can fix the timing issue with his throwing hand he'll get better hip-shoulder separation and that should add some additional velocity to his fastball. He's a 14 year old 8th grader and has touched 80 mph a few times with his fastball. He's already 6 feet tall and still growing. Once he fills out a bit, if he works at it and has the desire he might be able to go places in this game. He already has 2 MLB scouts and a college recruiter that somehow found his live streaming hitting workouts on Instagram and they all started following his account and chimed in with some advice. I'm really proud of the work ethic he has on the field. But since he became a teenager I wish he'd put that same work ethic into his homework!

If you can get to where the big bass are you can catch them off the bank just as well as the boat. I bank fish and my biggest is just under 7 pounds, but I've seen 10 and 12 pounders landed from the bank.

With all of the baseball fields, parks, and the baseball academy where my son works out closed we've had to improvise. As it so happens, are driveway is on an angle and makes a pretty good pitching mound. Next step is to build a plyo box for jump / leg strength. I need to get him on a radar gun. He's really bringing it now.

The other day I read that teams are not giving refunds. They are treating the games as rain outs and offering exchanges for future games.

Considering the ease of transmission of COVID-19 and the fact that people without symptoms can transmit it I'd say those numbers are pretty good (although personally I don't believe China's numbers). Consider that in the 2018-19 flu season the US alone had 34,000 deaths and in the 2019-20 flu season we have had 24,000 flu deaths. We're not out of the woods yet but the estimates today for the US were around 40K deaths from COVID-19. Anyway, I'm not a doctor or a scientist and I can't predict the future. This entire situation stinks but I thought I'd share some additional data to give some additional perspective. As for your question I've cleaned my house, washed my car, looked for a new job, cleaned my parents house and did their shopping and errands, binge watched some TV, played Civilization V and Roller Coaster Tycoon on the PC, and did a lot of bank fishing when visiting my parents. Tomorrow my son and I are trying some bank fishing at Lake Edwin Johnson since it's one of the few lakes in the state that are open for bank fishing only. Between my son's injuries, illness, and lately laziness he hasn't been able to have any baseball workouts lately. The local baseball academy where he works out is closed and so are all of the baseball fields. But today I pushed him to do some agility work, J-Bands work, and throw a BP session into a net in our driveway. As luck would have it, the driveway is sloped like a pitcher's mound.

Funny you should mention looking in the water. Last week I was fishing down in the SC Lowcountry and there were tons of tiny fry or baitfish along the banks where I was bank fishing. I ran into a guy who was fly fishing for bass and he was using this tiny, 1" streamer that essentially looked like a small, gray piece of fuzz. But it matched the hatch. He caught a 9 pounder on that little streamer.

It was clarified tonight that hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreational activities are still allowed. That's the good news. The bad news is that the fishing around here isn't that good. But I'll give it another try tomorrow - at least I'll get some exercise. Back to the Lowcountry next week for some better fishing.

For those interested, South Carolina DNR just re-opened some lakes for bank fishing only. Here's the list: http://www.dnr.sc.gov/news/2020/apr/a3_lakes.php However, just this afternoon Governor McMaster issued an order telling everyone to stay home unless they are working, visiting family, going out for essential services (groceries, medical appointments), or exercising. I'm wondering if walking the banks and fishing counts as exercising. My son and I were planning to go Lake Edwin Johnson tomorrow to throw a baseball around (they have large grassy areas and all of the ballparks are closed) and do some bank fishing.

SC closed all state parks and public waterways, but you can still fish ponds and lagoons if they are available in your area. Unfortunately, those are all private here and every one I have drove by has no trespassing and no fishing signs posted.

With the lakes, state parks, baseball fields, baseball training facilities, hiking trails, biking trails, and just about everything except grocery stores and gas stations closed down there's less and less to do around here. But today I sorted through some scrap wood in my garage and decided to start making a stand to hold my fishing rods. The wood I have is junk, so it won't be an indoor furniture piece but it will be functional garage unit. I have some decent wood I can repurpose from my son's old bed frame that I might be able to build something else with as well. I just need to figure out what I should build. The only problem is my router dies and that kind of limits what I can do.

I didn't win the lottery and had to return back home where all of the lakes are closed. This isn't fun anymore. The only thing to look forward to today is a deep dish Jett's pizza.

A few nights ago I was fishing the small, 1/3 acre lagoon behind my father’s house. Across the street is a large lagoon and these are connected via the storm water system that runs under the road. I don’t always get bites here, but when I do they are quality bass- every catch has been between 4 and 6.5 pounds including a 4.5 pounder earlier in the week on a Strike King Banshee Buzzbait in the Sexy Shad color. This particular buzzbait is beat to heck. It’s bent everywhere, half the paint is missing, and it squeaks when I retrieve it. For all I know that squeak is what makes it a killer bait. Anyway, I make a cast and the line snaps and there goes my favorite bait. But as luck would have it I was casting parallel to the shore and as I approached I saw the remnants of my 30 pound braid floating on the surface. There’s a little 4 foot gator in that lagoon but he paid no attention as I snagged the line with my rod and pulled my favorite lure to safety. But the story gets even better. A cold front rolled in overnight and even with what is normally a tough day of fishing after a front I decided it was better to be outdoors instead of inside watching the doom and gloom on the news. After 3 days of temps in the 80’s today was in the upper 50’s and low 60’s with wind that more than rippled the surface of the water and partly cloudy skies. Other than that pesky post front, it was a great day for a buzz bait. So I hit one of my favorite lagoons for throwing that bait. The other evening I caught three bass in the 2-3 pound range in about 20 minutes there. I worked my normal path down the bank casting parallel to the shore about 8-10 feet out and landed a nice 3 pounder. A few minutes later I hooked up again but for some reason tried to finesse the fish in, the line slacked, the bass jumped out of the water and then slipped the hook. Dang. There’s a point on the bank where there is a bottlebrush tree that goes down to the water and I have to move away from the bank to go around, but bass also tend to feed on baitfish there. I made a few casts and no bites. For some reason I decided to cast well beyond the bush and to the middle of the lagoon. BAM! My sexy shad buzzbait got smoked and the rod loaded up big time. It was a decent battle but she was no match - there was no way I was going to get lazy and finesse this one in. She weighed in at 6.3 pounds. Not a PB, but a nice one nonetheless. Picture is below. But the story continues. On the next cast my line snapped again but this time it sailed to the middle of the lagoon I was fishing. My favorite bait, beat up as it was, was finally gone. Sleeping with the fishes, as they say. I went home dejected and immediately ordered another 1/2 ounce of the same bait as well as a 3/8 ounce version from nearby DSG curbside pickup. A few hours later I was back there fishing my new, shiny, non squeaky 1/2 ounce buzzbait and you guessed it - the line snapped again! I was not happy at all. I tied on the 3/8 buzzbait and worked down the bank. For grins I tossed the bait 90 degrees from about where along the bank I thought the line snapped, let it sink to the bottom and started reeling in slow. Talk about blind luck I saw my line get tugged and come to the surface - but I could not reach it or snag it with my pole. So I took off my shoes and socks, hiked up my pants, scanned everywhere for gators, said a quick prayer, waded a few steps in, grabbed my line and hightailed it out of the lagoon. Yes, I rescued my buzzbait! But before going home I stopped and bought one Powerball and one Mega Millions ticket. After all, luck seems to be on my side this week. After getting home I inspected my rod and one of the guides had a small nick in it and I assume that is what did the damage to the line. Repairs will be underway in the morning. If you don’t hear from me soon then assume I did win the lottery. If that happens my next post will be showing off my new lake house and my new boat!